Process for treating fabrics



Patented May 27, 1941 Howard A. Young, Westfleld, N.

J., assignor to United States Rubber Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey No Drawing. App

lication May 27, 1943,

Serial No. 488,751 4 Claims. (Cl. 117-62) This invention relates to a process for treating fabrics, and more particularly to improving the properties of fabrics, such as knitted stockings, having deposited thereon the direct deposit of solids from an aqueous suspension of rubber or water-insoluble synthetic resin.

The deposition of rubber and water-insoluble synthetic resins directly onto fabrics from baths containing particles of such treating material in suspension therein is known. In the Teague and Brewster Patent 1,845,569, there are disclosed processes for slowly precipitating rubber in the form of discontinuous small particles from dilute aqueous dispersions of rubber onto fabrics, such as knitted stockings and the like, by heating the bath, or by adding small amounts of coagulant to the bath. In my prior Patents 2,173,241 to ,173,244 there are disclosed processes for gradually depositing particles of rubber and other treating material, including artificial resins, onto fabrics by treatment with aqueousdispersions oi the treating material which gradually exhaust the dispersed particles of rubber or resin or other material onto the fabric when the fabric is permitted to remain in contact with the dis rsion bath. In my Patents 2,340,357 and 2,l 0,358, there are disclosed processes for gradually depositing rubber and synthetic resin particles onto fabric by treatment with suspensions of the rubber or artificial resinin a flocculated condition which, in a manner similar to the dispersions of my prior Patents 2,173,241 to 2,173,244, gradually exhaust the flocculated particles of the treating material on the fabric when the fabric is permitted to remain in contact with the treating bath. With such gradual deposition of the rubber or synthetic resin particles the fabric retains to a great extent the feel and "handle" of an untreated fabric, but has the advantage of increased strength and wearing qualities by virtue of the deposited treating material,

and, in the case of knitted fabrics, such as stockby these prior processes,

sequent to the deposition of the rubber or waterinsoluble synthetic resin particles and while the treated fabric is in a wet state prior to drying of the fabric.

In carrying out the present invention, the fabric after having the rubber or water-insoluble synthetic resin deposited directly thereon from a bath containing the treating material in suspension in colloidal or flocculated form is separated from the used treating bath and then given a treatment or rinse in an aqueous bath containing a small amount of a cation-active agent, after which the fabric may be dried in the usual manner. The treatment of the fabric after deposition of the rubber or water-insoluble synthetic resin inv a bath containing the cationactive agent reduces the tack or drag of the deposit, permits easy pulling of stockings onto drying forms, and eliminates the rubbing-0E or transfer of particles of the deposit onto the drying forms or onto the operator's hands. Cation-active agents are well known, and are considered as organic ionizable compounds that ionize in aqueous medium to give a positively charged ion or micelle containing a hydrophobic group such as a long chain aliphatic group, for example, one

containing at least 6 carbon atoms, and preferably 12 to 18 carbon atoms. The treatment of fabrics per se with a cation-active agent, and the deposition of rubber from rubber dispersions where the fabric is preliminarily treated with acation-active agent, and the deposition of rubber from rubber dispersions where the charge of the rubber particles in the dispersion is made positive by the addition of a cation-active agent to the dispersion, are known. In the treatment of fabings, there is the additional advantage of the locking of the filaments of the yarns, which minimizes snagging of the stockings. It has been found in these treatments, however, that there is a tendency for the deposit of treating material to give riseto a tack or drag in the wet state, which in the case of stockings makes extremely difllcult the pulling of the stockings onto the drying forms, and which in some cases leaves a deposit of the treating material on the drying forms and on the operator's hands. These disadvantagea are obviated by the present invention as a result of. a particular treatment of the fabric subrics per se with a cation-active material, there is not the objection of the wet tack or drag of deposited particles, such as of rubber or synthetic resin, to be overcome. In the case of the preliminary treatment of the fabric with a cationactive material and subsequent treatment with an aqueous dispersion 'of rubber, such as latex, the charge on the fabric is made positive by the cation-active material so that the rubber particles of the dispersion deposit on the fabric by the neutralization of the negative charge on the rubber particles. Where the charge on the rubber particles in the dispersion is reversed by the addition of a cation-active agent to the dispersion so that the rubber particles carry a positive charge, then the positively charged rubber particles are deposited on the negatively charged fabric again by a neutralization of the charge on the rubber particles. In the present case, the

. 3 particles of rubberor synthetic resin are deposited on the fabric without the aid of a cationactive agent, and this is a much preferred method of depositing the particles since the deposition can be'better controlled without the automatic neutralization of the charge on the dispersed particles by the fabric material. In the present case, it is only after the rubber or resin particles have been deposited on the fabric by a preferred method in the absence of a cation-active agent that a cation-active agent is added to the rinsing bath for the purpose of improving the tack or drag of the previously deposited rubber or resin particles. 1

Other classes of cation-active agents are the amines, amids, diamines and glyoxalidines having a straight chain aliphatic group containing at least 6 carbon atoms, and preferably containing 12 to 18 carbon atoms and their acid esters, for example: oleyl amide, stearyl amide, diethylethylene-oleyl-diamine, mu heptadecyl N hydroxyethyl glyoxalidine, mu heptadecyl N aminoethyl glyoxalidine. These various cation-active agents may be used in the rinse bath in amounts from .2 to 2 parts by weight of the cation-active agent per 100 parts of fabric. The temperature and time of treatment of the fabric or stockings with the bath containing-the cation-active material are not critical, generally five to thirty minutes at from room temperature to 110 F. being satisfactory.There may be one or more rinses in a bath containing the cation-active material after which the rinse water may be extracted as by draining, and squeezing through rollers in the case of flat fabrics or centrifuging in the case of fabrics such as stockings, and the fabric dried in the conventional manner, as in the case of stockings, pulling the stockings onto heated forms.

The following is illustrative of the present invention. A load of fifty dozen pairs of viscose rayon stockings which have been conventionally scoured, dyed, rinsed, and extracted to dampness by centrifuging, weighing about 100 pounds wet, of which about pounds is retained rinse water, were placed in a conventional Monel metal paddle-type dyeing machine which contained about ing vulcanizing ingredients were added togetherwith 20 pounds of a 10% solution of a stabilizer, Aquarex D (monosodium sulphate ester of onehalf lauryl and one-half myristal alcohol). 125 pounds of a 40% aqueous solution of ammonium sulphate were then added causing flocculation of th rubber particles. The load of stockings were then introduced into the machine and allowed to remain with continual stirring for one hour during which time acid additions were made as follows: At 15 minutes treatment time, 2 pounds of 10% aqueous solution of formic acid. At 30 minutes treatment time and again at 45 minutes, 4 pounds of 10% aqueous formic acid. After the one hour total treatment time had elapsed, the machine was drained by draining oi! the used treating bath. While the drained stockings remained in the machine, about 3000 pounds of water at about F. were run in together with 10 pounds of 10% formic acid and 8 ounces of the acetic acid ester of mu heptadecyl N h'ydroxyethyl glyoxalidine which is a commercial cation-active agent. The stockings remained in this rinse bath for 15 minutes, after which they were removed, extracted in a centrifuge, and boarded or pulled onto the conventional heated forms for drying hosiery. Comparison of stockings rinsed with the dilute acid without the addition of the cationic-active agent clearly showed the improvement imparted by the cationic-active agent so far as ease of boarding" the stockings, and elimination of rubber being rubbed-off on the forms and operators hands were concerned.

Fabrics of various constructions and made of various kinds of fibers, such as silk, wool, cotton, linen, viscose rayon, acetate rayon, nylon and the like, may be treated according to the principles of the present invention. The improvement imparted by the cation-active agent accordingto the present treatment has also been applied to deposits on fabrics directly deposited from aqueous suspensions of reclaimed rubber,

and of water-insoluble synthetic resins which are the vulcanizable so-called synthetic rubber-like materials, e. g. butadiene polymers, copolymers of a major proportion of butadiene and a minor proportion of a monovinyl compound copolymerizabletherewith, such as styrene and acrylic nitrile, copolymers of a major proportion of polyisobutylene and a minor proportion of a dioleiine copolymerizable therewith such as butadiene-1,3 and isoprene, and organic polysulphide polymer plastics commercially known as Thiokols. The improvement imparted by the cation-active agent according to the present invention is also applicable to deposits on fabrics directly deposited from aqueous suspensions of the various other kinds of water-insoluble synthetic resins, e. g. phenol-aldehyde resins, urea-aldehyde resins, melamine-aldehyde resins, aromatic amine-aldehyde resins, synthetic linear organic polyamids (condensation polymerization of a diamine and a dibasic carboxylic acid), acrylic resins (polymers of monomeric derivatives of acrylic acid or methacrylic acid), alkyd resins (polyhydric alcoholpolybasic acid polymers), polyterpene hydrocarbon resins (produced by catalytic polymerization of turpentine), polyvinyl esters, polyvinyl acetals, polyvinylidene esters, copolymers of 'vinyl esters and vinylidene esters, polystyrene, polyvinyl naphthalene, sulphurized factice), polyisobutylene, cellulose esters, ethyl cellulose.

In view of the many changes and modifications that may be made without departing from the principles underlying the invention, reference should be made to the appended claims for an understanding of the scope of the protection afforded the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is: g

1. The process of treating fabrics which comprises directly depositing onto afabric rubber from an aqueous suspension of rubber, separating the thus treated material from the used treating bath, and rinsing the treated material before vegetable oils (such as 5 drying in an aqueous bath containing a cationprises directly depositing onto a fabric rubber from an aqueous suspension of rubber, separating the thus treated material from the used treating bath, and rinsing the treated material before drying in an aqueous bath containing .2 to 2 parts by weight of a cation-active agent selected from the class consisting of quaternary ammonium salts in which one of thegroups attached to the nitrogen comprises a straight chain aliphatic group having at least 6 carbon atoms and amines, amids, 'diamines and glyoxalidines having a straight chain aliphatic group containing at least 6 carbon atoms per 100 parts by weight of the fabric.

3. The process 0 1: treating knitted stockings which comprises directly depositing onto knitted stockings rubber from an aqueous bath containing particles of rubber suspended therein, separating the thus treated stockings from the used treating bath, rinsing the treated stockings before drying in an aqueous hath containing a cationactive agent selected from the class consisting of quaternary ammonium salts in which one of the groups attached to the nitrogen comprises a straight chain aliphatic group having at least 6 carbon atoms and amines, amids, diamines and glyoxalidines having a straight chain aliphatic group containing at least ficarbon atoms, and drying the stockings on heated forms.

4. The process of treating knitted stockings, which comprises directly depositing onto knitted stockings rubber from an aqueous bath containing particles of rubber suspended therein, separating the thus treated stockings from the used treating bath, rinsing the treated stockings before drying in an aqueous bath containing .2 to 2 parts by weight of a cation-active agent selected from the class consisting of quaternary ammonium salts in which one of the, groups attached to the nitrogen comprises a straight chain aliphatic group having at least 6 carbon atoms and amines,

amids, diamines and glyoxalidines having 9.

straight chain aliphatic group containing at least 6 carbon atoms per 100 parts by weight of the stockings, and drying the stockings "on heated forms.

HOWARD A. YOUNG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

80 UNITED STATES PA'I'EN'I'S Number Name Date 1,923,622 Hill Aug. 22, 1933 2,097,417 Neiley Oct. 26, 1937 2,104,728 Bertsch et al. Jan. 11, 1938 2,173,244 Young Sept. 19, 1939 2,168,535 Nuesslein et a1. Aug. 8, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS 40 Number Country Date 477,889 Great Britain- Jan. 5. 1938 495,830 Great Britain NOV. 18, 1988 501,288 Great Feb. 20, 1939 OTHER REFERENCES Rubber Age (1;. Y.) pages 23-25, Oct. 1940. 

